“Kage!” The door swings open to Pinoki’s excited face,

“Whoa,

Didn’t know you two were busy,” he notices Karina,

“It’s not what you think,”

“It’s exactly what you think,” Karina speaks over me

“I don’t care,” Pinoki says dryly

“Look Kage I have been waiting for you to tell me what you heard from the ‘flame’,

I could barely sleep last night, thinking about what adventure this could lead us on!”

“And you came to my room this early?” I yawn, “The sun has only just risen”

“Well, I wanted you to tell me first before we discussed everything with the others at breakfast, but it seems like you are already busy~”

“I’m not.

We’re not….,

Hhh” I sigh

“Any~wayss, I’ll see you at breakfast Kage, tell me all about it then,” Pinoki turns leaving the room,

…….

“-_-”

“Why are you looking at me like that for, Kage?

It’s not like we did anything,” Karina pulling the covers over herself,

“Get up,” I pull them off,

“Let me sleep” she purrs,

“Your room is down the hall, sleep there.”

…..

“What’s with the attitude Kage?”

“There isn’t any,” I answer blankly,

“Then come back and cuddle, with me” Karina tugs on my arm,

“Can you leave please?

I have to organize the room”

“Everything is already organized, what are you talking about?”

“The bed is uneven”

“So?”

“It has to be even.”

“Stop being weird Kage,” Karina yawns

“If you want me leave, make me,”

“Ok,”

I grab her ankle yanking her off the bed,

Thud!

Karina crashes to the floor

Without even flinching or reacting to the bump, she immediately sweeps her legs hard into my ankles buckling me to floor as well,

“Oww!”

Karina crawls over me digging her knee into my gut,

She brandishes a dagger to my throat...

“Don’t ever do that again.”

…….

…….

****

“Phew~” Apollo whistles seeing me walk up,

Him, Lyra and Pinoki sit around a table,

Lyra is busy giggling with Pinoki, which never happens, ever.

(Bastard went and ran his mouth)

“Hhhhh” I sit down joining them, with my cup of tea and a book on magic ignoring the three of them,

(At least I can get some reading in, I haven’t even fully understood magic yet, and all these new concepts like requiems keep getting brought up,)

“What were those loud noises coming from upstairs just now?” Apollo tires to interrogate,

I hold the book high over my face signifying my unwillingness to answer or even acknowledge that question,

……..

“How was your night, Kage?”

Thwack!

“Psschh!”

Lyra suddenly slaps me hard on the back, making me spit my tea out onto the pages,

“What is it with you people and back slapping!”

“I don’t know Kage, you tell me?”

“What is that even supposed to mean?”

“Come on Kage,” Lyra placing her arm over my shoulder,

“We’re all ‘buddies’ here you can tell me anything,”

“….”

“Why is it that I can never come and meet you guys being normal?” Claude and Amelia join us at the table,

“No idea what you mean,” Lyra says releasing me, retaking her seat,

“Whatever…., so I heard about this Job-” Claude already starts,

“Hey Amelia,” Apollo deliberately talks over him,

“Has Giichi sir already shown you and Claude inside the artifact room?”

“Why do you ask?” she replies meekly

“We saw yesterday,

The requiems, I mean” Apollo speaking almost whisperingly,

“It’s ok, everyone here knows about it” Amelia reassures,

“Well except Claude who doesn’t pay attention to anything,” she squeezes his hand,

“I couldn’t tell you more about them back when we saw ‘Marisha and Adrik’ because it is an unspoken rule to not talk the guilds business,”

“That seems fair Pinoki,” comments,

“I’m good at keeping secrets by the way,”

“Ehhck ehhck!” I fake coughing sounds to that statement,

“What’s wrong Kage?

Do you have something to say?” Pinoki chortles

“No, I just almost choked on this ‘Bs’…., tea

Bittersweet tea I mean,”

“Speaking of things that are bittersweet,” Apollo nods toward an approaching Karina,

“What?” she sits down, noticing the staring eyes,

“Nothing,” Apollo turns his face,

“How was your night?” Lyra pipes up,

“Hmm besides getting that whole lecture from Giichi, I slept with Kage and that’s about it,” She replies blankly,

(So glad that I wasn’t drinking tea right now)

“Interesting~,” Lyra’s cocky, teasing stare makes, me want to go another round with her...

…...“Since when do you care about my wellbeing Lyra?” Karina sounding somewhat flattered by the girl’s question,

“For clarification I would like to say we slept next to each other,” I put in

“Is that what this is about?” Karina interprets

….

Gadump!

“Ahwww!”

Pinoki receives an empty hardwood cup thrown across the table directly on his forehead

“What the hell Karina!?”

“Don’t go spreading false rumours,” she smiles cheerfully

“If anything did happen, I would be the first one to spread it,

Like with me and Apollo-”

“-Umm yeah, so Claude what was that about jobs you were taking about!??” Apollo questions, his voice ‘randomly’ loud all of sudden.

“Would you people keep it down over there!” An angry voice shouts from across the room

“Y-” Lyra begins to speak but I immediately clasp my hand over mouth,

“Aggh!

Don’t bite, Lyra!”

“Well don’t stop me from talking!”

“You were about to antagonize that guy,”

“No, I was going to respectfully tell him to mind his business,”

“I can still hear you!” the man retorts

“Let it go Yannick they are still newcomers here,” someone else tries calming down the short-tempered blond-haired man.

“Claude!” Yannick calls,

“Can you tell your new friends to be more mindful of others when in the ‘mess’ next time!?”

“I think they can hear-”

“-Claude, Can you tell your old guildmate to be more mindful of his ‘asshollery’ next time!?” Lyra snaps back

“Claude, can you tell that rude bitch, that name calling is very disrespectful!?”

“Claude, can you tell that blonde bozo that I shall call him as I see fit!?”

“Claude…”

“Weren’t we supposed to be discussing what we learnt yesterday?” I lean over to Apollo

“I thought so to, but this is entertaining so I’m not complaining” he responds

…………

“Claude, can you tell that ‘doofus’ in that awful hat and terrible outfit, that I will turn him into a frozen turd if he dare challenges me!?”

The back and forth continues….

“Claude tell than idiot girl that death by supercharged stoning is extremely pain full”

Whack!

“Awww!”

Who threw a boot at me!”

“Hey who stole my boot?”

“What the hell Josh, can’t you see I was in the middle of something!?”

Yannick now turns his attention to a brown-haired young man of medium build, who wears only one boot, the other foot bare

“Why would you attack me for no reason!?”

“It wasn’t me br-”

“-Tell it to the lights”

A light flashes and the two men disappear, presumably in a battle right now,

…..

“Well that settles that,” Karina taking her seat once more, so does Pinoki

“Wait that was you two?” Claude asks, puzzled

“I didn’t hear you get up,”

“That was the point,

I had Pinoki silently steal that guy, Josh is his name’s boot, and I threw it in the other guy, Yannick’s face,” Karina explains,

“No need to thank me Lyra”

“I could’ve handled that on my own,” Lyra scoffs

“Knowing you, that argument would have lasted forever,” Apollo remarks,

“No, I was planning on challenging him myself,

Teach him a lesson or two,”

“Aren’t we supposed to be talking about the requiems and other things from yesterday?” I interject impatiently

“To be honest,

I already forgot most of what that old man told us,” Lyra stretches her arms

“He talked about the beast requiems,” Apollo remembers

“That ‘throne’ was one as well,” Pinoki adds

“Don’t forget that blue ‘flame’ Kage kept staring at” I feel Karina words jabbing at me,

“Blue flame?” Claude who’d been listening to us, asks curiously

“It was just a magic artifact I found interesting,” I lie,

“I was also really interested in that map,” quickly changing the topic,

“You mean the requiem of erm…

What was his name again?” Claude turns to his sister

“Takeroumu.” She rolls her eyes,

“Yeah that,

That map is every adventurer’s dream, to explore the entire ring,”

“The number of thrilling adventures you could have” Pinoki salivates,

“Mhm” I nod agreeingly

“I am not one for the adventurous life, but I can’t deny that does sound thrilling,

Lands I haven’t seen before, undiscovered or long forgotten places,

We have yet to come across an ocean yet and I can only wonder what exists across it,”

“Ocean?”………

Everybody looks at each other confusedly,

“Kage makes up his own words and terminology a lot, get used to it,” Pinoki explaining to the even doubly confused Amelia and Claude,

“Own words?

What did I say that is foreign to you?”

“Ocean, that is not a real word Kage,” Lyra tells

“What do you mean not a real word?

Ocean, a large body of water spread across a great distance that separates….”

My voice trails off,

(What am I even talking about?)

“Kage,” Karina informs,

“There is no such thing as an ocean.”